The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1887-03-04
THE COUNTRYS ENEMY.

How the SalOOn-Keeper Has Taken ADJ
vantage of the American Characteristic
of " Rushing" Every Thing.
If the American has a characteristic
by which he may be distinguished from
the men of every other country in the
world it is that he is quick. This char
acteristic has been described as restless
ness; it is also called nervousness, but
under whatever name it is described or
known the fact is that the American
seems never at ease, never at leisure,
never to have any time to spare, nor to
waste one minute about any thing that
he has before him to do.
What he puts his hand to he is gem
orally found doing with his might, and
whether with might or not, what he
has to do he does quickly. And so it
never was in accord with his character
to spend whole evening drinking q
glass, or even bottle. of wine.
Other nations say that we are unso-
cial by nature; perhaps that is true;
but at any rate the American way of
drinking is to drink singly, or by twos
and threeS, at any time of the day or
night when opportunity favors, and to
take the liquor as people take medicine,
as quickly as possible, and have it over
with. So it happened that the man
who set up his saloon on the corner
where most men passed, and where
they could stop and obtain an intoxicat-
inn Il f1frnf -
was the man who soon got rich out of
his trade. This being true, saloons
multiplied until to-day you will find
one in every possible place where men
in any considerable numbers pass and
repass daily.
At the end of the railroad bridge that
leads across the Missouri river to KAN
sas City there is saloon, and its sign,
painted on board that extends out
over the railroad track just where the
train is obliged to halt moment going
and coming, reads on one side of the
board Last Chance" and on the other
side ''First Chance" This illustrates
simply the keen scent of the American
saloon-keeper for money. He knows
that every train brings a thirsty COM
pany that will embrace the first OPP
portunity to drink, and that every de-
parting train carries away company
many of whom will miss no opportun-
ity for drinking, and will therefore
patronize the saloon that offers "last
chance"
All this by way of showing how the
American character and American
drinking habits have built up the amer
lean saloon as an institution. There
are 3,777 in Chicago, or l to 81 fami-
lies, while in 1881 Boston, with $4,000
people, had 700 dram shops, Or to II
adult males. Some of these places also
sold other things. While Boston in
1881 had a larger proportion of places
where liquor was sold, there was a
great difference between them and the
saloon of to-day. If 1t is true that the
American character, combined with
common human weakness, has built the
gilded palaces called saloons in all our
cities, it is even more true that the Amer
lean saloon has had a reciprocal effect
upon American character, all too deep,
all too likely, to be lasting. Self-con-
troll, the ability to resist indulgence
when opportunity offers, is rare quail
ity among men. So far in human his
tory it is only the few that attain it.
Drinking intoxicating liquors has for
many ages been agreeable for one rea-
son or another to most of the human
family. Those who do not particularly
enjoy the taste find enjoyment in toxi-
cation, and those to whom neither this
nor that is attractive enjoy the social
life, the lounging habits, connected in
one way or another with drinking.
But never, think, in any other age
or time, have these human weaknesses
been so seductively assaulted, never
have opportunities of indulgencies of
these kinds been strewn so thickly
along the ordinary pathway of men as
in the cities and towns of our country.
Req. DGUid ~ Utter.